motion-media NEC 8143, you will be concerned mostlywith recording motion-video images using a singlecamcorder. A camcorder has a single VTR directlyattached to the camera to form a camera and recorderunit.

Each camcorder comes with manufacturer's

instructions on how to use the equipment. Because thereare a great variety of camcorders in the Navy, you mustconsult the instruction manual supplied with yourmachine for best results. One common motion-videocamera used in the Navy is the Hi8 video camera(fig. 13-8).

The Hi8 camcorder is a small camera-VTR unit that

records amazingly high-quality pictures and soundcompared to a video home system (VHS) camcorder. Ituses a special 8mm (about 1/3 inch) cassette withmetal-oxide coated tape. These tapes are similar in sizeto an audio cassette tape.

A tempting practice while operating a camcorder is

to shoot all videotape in the automatic mode. On theSony Hi8 camcorder, when the AUTO LOCK switch isset, the iris, focus, white balance, sensitivity, and shutterspeed (1/60) are set and adjusted automatically. If leftunnoticed, there are several circumstances under whichthe AUTO LOCK mode will produce poor or

undesirable results. You, as the camera operator, mustpay attention to the subject and the surrounding

the brightness level. When the brightness level is toolow, the recorded image looks grainy and flat. Byfamiliarizing yourself with the brightness level of thesubject, you can improve your recordings tremendously.In situations where the light level exceeds 100,000 lux,such as snow-covered scenes or a beach scene on a clearsummer day, an ND filter is required. Under other

daylight and bright, indoor conditions, the automatic irisis capable of adjusting to provide excellent results;however, in a low-light situation, such as spaces onboardship, auxiliary lighting may be required to provide clear,

sharp images. Another alternative, when available onyour camcorder, is to increase gain. By increasing the

gain, you increase the level of amplification of the videosignal. This increases the contrast and provides ahigher-quality recorded image.

In some situations, such as high-contrast scenes or

backlit subjects, you must adjust the iris manually. Justlike the aperture on a still camera, when the subject isbacklit, open up the iris. When the subject is too bright,you must close down the iris.

Manual Focusing

There are situations when you must manually focus

the camcorder to obtain sharp images. In theautofocusing mode, the system uses a sensor at thecenter of the viewfinder screen to adjust the focusautomatically; therefore, in situations where there isinsufficient light, the subject is strongly backlit, or withsubjects consisting of flat colors or little contrast (suchas bulkheads or the sky), the autofocusing mode maynot function accurately.

Other situations in which you should use manual

focusing are as follows:

When the subject has finely detailed repetitivepatterns

When one subject is close to the camera andanother is far away

When the subjects are located behind screens,nets, or frosted glass

When objects pass between the camera and theprimary or intended subject